Archive for Content Marketing – Page 66

Great Options: How to create a no-brainer

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, February 19th, 2009

PredictablyIrrational
I just read something in Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely that blows me away. The Economist offered 3 options on their website for subscriptions:

  1. Economist.com subscription – $59 for online access
  2. Print subscription – $125 for printed issues
  3. Print & Web subscription – $125 for both print and online editions

Wait a minute. Logically, this makes no sense. From a potential subscribers point of view, it's a no-brainer to choose option #3. Which is precisely what the magazine wants you to do.

This is really good marketing. It seems as consumers, we don't really understand the value of something unless it's relative to something else. When you can see options in context, it's easier to make a decision.

"In the case of the Economist, the decision between the Internet-only and print-only options would take a bit of thinking. Thinking is difficult and sometimes unpleasant. So the Economist's marketers offered us a no-brainer: relative to the print-only option, the print and Internet options looks clearly superior."

How can you apply this to your content writing? Well, if you're writing to get people to take some sort of action, give them options. Then make one option vastly superior.

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, Email Marketing Tips, On Writing Better, Writing Great Copy

Why I Love Blogging, after all these years…

By Patsi Krakoff
Saturday, February 14th, 2009

ValentineBlogging
It's hard for me to express all the ways and reasons I'm in love with blogging. Denise did a fine list over on our Build a Better Blog. Andy Wibbels posts a great read over on Typepad's blog.

Like a good husband, you might not always treat your blog right, but you always come back to it. Here are a few of my reasons why:

  1. It helps me think. I go to write a post and I try to answer this question: What do readers need to know? How can I teach them key points about writing on the web that will be useful and fun? What am I learning myself that needs to be shared?
  2. Publishing my posts helps me stay in touch with key people and connect with new visitors. Readers often stimulate my thinking. When they stop by and leave a comment, I'm really touched.
  3. Blogging forces me to grow. I can't afford to do, think, and write the same 'ol stuff. I have to learn what my readers need so I can help them, and they help me by driving me to learn.
  4. Since Typepad makes blogging so easy for us non-techy folks to do, I love it because I feel powerfully geeky and smarty-pants-like… heh, heh, even I can do this!

I would like to reprint some gems of Andy Wibbels' post here, just in case you don't click the link and read his entire worthwhile post over on Typepad…

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing

Get Inspired, Write Better…A List of Great Ego Blogs

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, February 10th, 2009

Big-head
I really like using Alltop.com to find blogs in niches. But recently I discovered a different category through their aggregated lists of top blogs… personalities, or as they call them, Egos!

I have no idea what their requirement is to get listed as an Ego blog, but looking at the individuals who are included, I'd say these are all big names in the Blogosphere and they have big readership followings.

Heck, some even have big heads, but for sure, they all write with larger than life personalities.

It's worth studying their blogs to learn the ways they write and include their personalities. These blogs are completely different, in various fields of expertise. But they are all strong personalities.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Folks, I could go on and on, but you make your own list of great blogs to read so you get the kind of inspiration you need for writing better blogs and newsletters. I didn't put on my list the more famous people in this category, people like Seth Godin, Donald Trump, Mark Cuban, Robert Scoble. They are also excellent.

These people all know how to write well, adding their authentic personalities into their posts. I believe we all have it in us to write just as well, if we study people who do it and do what they do, only in a way is true to our own styles, remaining authentic.

Categories : About Blogs, Blogs We Love, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Writing Better Ezines, Writing Great Blog Content

3 Words to Describe You: How to Add Personality to Your Writing

By Patsi Krakoff
Saturday, February 7th, 2009

Fresh-ideas-sign-in-the-sky
This is gutsy but good. How do you find your unique "voice" for writing your e-newsletter or blog posts? How do you capture and include personality into your content?

I was poking around the E-Newsletter Success membership site and found this great exercise journal. The document is designed to help professionals write in a way that is unique, personal and compelling. In other words, NOT boring…

Maybe this is the secret sauce to why Michael Katz's E-Newsletter on E-Newsletters is such a raving success. Michael always tells a personal story, usually with humor, and then ties it into a relevant, useful tip.

Anyone can do this. The trick is to do it with personality and flair. Wait a minute, though. What the heck is that? …And how do you elicit your own personality in your writing? How do you write about yourself without being egocentric or boring?

Here's the gutsy exercise: write an email to 10 people who know you well and ask them to describe you with the first 3 words that come to mind.

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better

E-Newsletter Success: How to painlessly learn to be profitable

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, February 4th, 2009

Launch a Profitable E-Newsletter with E-Newsletter Success

News
I haven't been this excited about ezines since blogs burst on the scene. I still believe in the power of sending out a regular, well-crafted e-newsletter for your business.

It's just that email deliverability issues and the time to put one together…you know what I'm talking about…unless you know what you're doing, an emailed newsletter can cost you time and worry.

You can just STOP thinking like that. This is the swift solution to learning quickly and inexpensively everything you need to know to craft an ezine that works, that brings in business and makes money for you. This is pain-free, folks.

I'm a huge fan of Michael Katz of Blue Penquin Development. You've heard me gush about his clever writing before: His E-Newsletter on E-Newsletters is a first class production. If nothing else, if you just copied what he does, you'd have a spectacular ezine.

Yesterday Michael announced he's teamed up with Chad Board. They've just launched their E-Newsletter Success training membership program.

If you're thinking about starting an ezine to grow your business, start here. If you're thinking about abandoning yours, don't do it. Learn what you need to know and turn your e-newsletter into a profit machine.

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, Email Marketing Tips, Managing Your Ezine & Blog Tasks, Writing Better Ezines

Slow Blogging or Speed Blogging: The Tango

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009

Tango1
Two great posts to read for blog authors who are procrastinators or perfectionists:

Speed Blogging: How to Write Better Posts in Less Time by Mara Rogers who gives four guidelines for procrastinators: "Just write and commit. Click on “Publish.” And then start writing your next post."

But if you know your writing could use a little forethought and editing work, then don't miss this post by Sonia Simone, Slow Blogging:

"I try to write a post two days before I want to post it. Over those next two days, I’ll read the post with fresh eyes each day and make changes. I do a last pass when I’m prepping it to post."

I agree with both. Many clients I work with are overly concerned with their writing and delay publishing because of unwarranted fears. They miss the opportunity to improve their writing because they simply aren't doing enough of it.

And I truly believe that re-reading and editing most stuff can only improve it. I strive to make at least one in-depth original post once a week and will take several days to edit it before publishing. What about you?

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better

MyYahoo Forgets to Feed Me: Lost in Mexico…

By Patsi Krakoff
Monday, February 2nd, 2009

Lake3
Something somewhere had gone dramatically wrong…somehow I'd been feeling left out of the loop all week. I was missing something but what? I hadn't posted in days and my writing felt limp…

Suddenly I woke at 3 a.m. I went straight to my computer. I logged onto the Internet. Then it hit me…

My 'MyYahoo' page wasn't there! Instead I got a generic page…missing were all my favorite blog feeds. No Copyblogger, no Junta42 blog, no 800CEORead, no RemarkableCommunication.

No wonder I felt so uninspired and totally ignorant. How could I let that happen?

As some of you know, we moved back to Ajijic, Mexico two weeks ago. I'm still unpacking boxes. And even though our computers and TVs and phones are all miraculously high-speed and wired-up, some details didn't get finished properly.

I use MyYahoo to feed all my favorite blog content so I can stay current with what's going on in Content Marketing (and tennis, and the rest of the world!) Without it, I kept having to go to each site to find out what's being said.

If you're not using a feed reader such as MyYahoo, Google Reader, Newsgator, or such, then you're not alone. There are estimates that say 85% of Web users don't use RSS feeds. And yet it's simple and easy to set up. I'm lost without it.

I also get email updates of blog content either through Feedburner or Feedblitz, but I like seeing blog updates on MyYahoo page in the morning. What about you? What do you use to stay informed?

Related posts: BuildaBetterBlog.com on RSS

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing

Recession-proof Your Business: Listen to What the Experts Do

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, January 29th, 2009

(Please note: the following blog post is a promotional announcement about our January 09 CD sale. The CDs are offered at a 61% discount. The sale ends when supplies end, or when February comes around…)

Problems
"Every single money-sucking business problem you have is going to be resolved, one way or the other."

That's
what I heard the other day, and it's true. Whatever your problems, with
your business or your blog, things either solve themselves…or you
aren't in business any more!

No business, no problem! I know, that's rather grim, but maybe you could use a little help so this doesn't happen…

Do what smart professionals do:  Get immediate
professional advice and learn what you need to do differently:

  • Get a healthy Reality Check on your situation…
  • Fix the profit-leaks in your business, for your blog and all your content marketing efforts…
  • Learn how the smart pros like Tom Antion, Joan Stewart and The Blog
    Squad are still reeling in leads and converting them to customers…
  • And quickly get busy making your business work like crazy

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, Online Marketing, Writing for the Web, Writing Great White Papers

7 Top Ten Ways to Get Readers to Respond – What’s Missing on this List?

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

10-winner-3d-symbol-isolated
"Calls to Action" isn't just about asking for the sale. When it comes to writing content that markets for your business, you must interact with readers and get them involved long before you ever ask for the sale.

In Leesa Barnes' recent Blog Squad interview on Social Media Telesummit II, we talked a lot about how blog authors must actively encourage audience participation. Here are 7 out of 10 ways to do that:

  1. Run a poll
  2. Ask readers questions and ask them to comment
  3. Do a survey
  4. Run a contest
  5. Ask them to submit their tips, ideas, and suggestions. Example, a post I titled, “What would you tell this professional to do?” brought in many comments
  6. Ask them to contribute resources and links
  7. Write a top ten list of great blogs in your field, then ask them to contribute additional ones. This will let you know what your readers are reading and give you an idea of what they appreciate. (This is a great way to build links because people on your top ten list will post on their blog about being included in your list…)

What's missing from this list? Any other suggestions? What is one of your most responsive tactics? Hit the comment link below and share…

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, Online Marketing, Writing Great Blog Content

Get the Best Out of Your Business Blog

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, January 22nd, 2009

Social Media TeleSummit
You won't want to miss Leesa Barnes’ Social Media Summit II.
It's Leesa's second year of presenting the telesummit with expert info
on what's new in Social Media and what you really need to pay attention
to for growing your business on the Web.

On Friday, January 23, 2009, at 1:30 p.m. ET, The Blog Squad presents this program:

Get the Best Out of Your Blog: How to Create Massive Visibility on The Web

Think
about it: Many of your ideal clients go online every day, and some have
problems only you can solve …but sadly, most of them can't find you.

In
order to build desire for your products and services you need to be
findable online. If you want to take your business from doing OK to
doing great, you need to have massive visibility online. With the
proliferation of easy-to-use web tools, you can easily connect with
more people than ever before.

If your goal is to transform
people's lives doing what you love, then you need to create massive
visibility online. The best way to do that is with a business blog
that's optimized.

You'll learn how to use your blog to:

  • Get you massive visibility so your ideal clients can find you
  • Reverse the client chase, to attract your ideal clients online, spending less than 30 minutes a day and $10 a month
  • Tap into the pool of 1.4 billion people world-wide who are connected to the Internet and looking for information and solutions
  • Connect with ideal clients in a more intimate way so they are
    driven to contact you, already pre-sold to buy your products or services
  • Leverage the power social networking sites without wasting your time

Don't waste time trying to guess what's best. Learn from the experts. For more info and to register, click here.

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, Managing Your Ezine & Blog Tasks, Online Marketing
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